


Can We Do This Again?

by MadieBelle



Category: Team Fortress 2
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-28
Updated: 2014-07-28
Packaged: 2018-02-10 18:53:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2036241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MadieBelle/pseuds/MadieBelle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A few weeks had passed since the RED Co. bread monster incident and Scout's been tagging along on Miss Pauling's jobs. Is his consistent company a headache, or a surprising new comfort?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Can We Do This Again?

**Author's Note:**

> Not much to tag here I don't think. Takes place after Expiration Date, I know it's ridiculous just let me be happy.  
> Open to criticism!

It was hard to believe the most intense work day of Miss Pauling's life had only been a few weeks ago. It felt like at least twice a week she had a thrilling reoccurring dream fighting off the bread monster Soldier had so haphazardly created in the base. Sometimes her dream focused on how much fun she was having, other times her mind seemed to wander to Scout when he dipped her or when he acted as her cushion and human shield inside the monsters throat, and she couldn't help but find herself shrugging her shoulders into her heated cheeks. 

Scout had gone on every mission possible with her since then. As soon as his work was finished for the day he would sprint to freshen himself in his quarters before racing back to her office. If she wasn't there, he waited for her to return and kept her company until the sun went down. 

Often times he liked to play it off like he'd come straight from battle to meet her, but she was smarter and more observant than to fall for that. 

That evening he tagged along with her on a popular body-burying job. It seemed over the weekend some of the other men decided to get completely shitfaced in town and cause scenes that depicted not only explosions but some civilian casualties. Needless to say those specific mercenaries had their alcohol privileges considerably revoked until further notice. 

The sun had begun to set as the two were on their way back to the RED base where Miss Pauling would part ways with Scout for the night and continue her work in her office while he hit the sack for the next day. Naturally he'd made multiple attempts to follow her back to her office, but she knew with him gabbing up her entire office space she wouldn't be nearly as efficient as she would be alone. 

Scout had been talking the entire car ride there and back, telling story upon story ranging from good times to trouble he had gotten into with his brothers. The current one he was wrapping up had to do with this time he'd gotten into a fight with a neighborhood kid who called his mom fat.

"So this kid's starin' at me with this dumbass expression like he's friggin' surprised I just popped him in schnoz but I mean seriously whatta you expect? You're callin' my ma a whale, ya think I'm just gonna say "okay" and walk away like a pansy? Nah sorry it don't work like that with me. Anyway this lard ass drops his pop and comes chargin' at me like a goddamn hog-" 

"Scout I can't help but predict the ending of this story," she interrupts. He paused, his hands frozen where they were making his storytelling gestures.

"Yeah? How?" 

"Whether you're being truthful or glorifying yourself I suspect you're going to tell me you dusted your hands while this other kid ran away crying for his own "fat mama"," her words came out rather effortlessly. Like she'd heard many stories similar to where his current one led on. 

Scout glanced around the truck, moving one of his hands to awkwardly rub the back of his neck.

"Uh...well...gee Miss Pauling, already figured out I was a hard ass since birth?" He figured he'd effortlessly regained his composure as he leaned back in the passenger seat and laced his fingers behind his head. 

"Hardly," she said with a sarcastic undertone that drew out her vowels. There was a bit of silence for once since they were on the road before he began to talk again. 

"Hey Miss Pauling?" She sighed. She finally knew how his poor mother felt. 

"Yes, Scout?"

"Uhh, I just thought I'd say y'know I really love- er, it's...really swell to be comin' along on these jobs with you." He tripped over his words clumsily. Something she noticed he'd been doing a lot recently; which was an extremely peculiar and drastic change compared to the first couple years of their interaction, when all she heard was desperate pick up lines and immature comments that poured out of his mouth like a running faucet. 

She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. He was fingering a loose fiber on the tape of his left hand. Another nervous tick she notices sometimes. It almost frustrated her how different he was acting. Then again why was she noticing so keenly? 

"I'm really only thinking about it now but I think it's been nice having someone around to help me," he looked up at her like a kid on Christmas.

"No foolin'? You like havin' me around?" He grinned happily and she realized she'd set off a trap. 

"I said someone." 

"Uh, yeah. Some one. One being me," he pointed at himself as he oh-so-cleverly emphasized the space between "some" and "one". 

"Well...yes but I was only referring to the fact that company and assistance is generally a good thing to have and I appreciate it," he was barely listening as he danced in his seat and the big smile adorned his face with a severity that exaggerated his overbite. He was singing a half-assed tune about her liking his company and for a moment she was ready to tap the brakes but she made the mistake of looking at him first. 

He looked like such a dork. 

Looking at him for the mere second she did brought back memories of when she was in grading school. She was never fond of the class clowns, they often got on her nerves easily with their extroverted personalities that so greatly paralleled her own. She thought of them as pointlessly rebellious and perpetually inept to the boundaries of rules and manners. Absolute morons. 

Scout fit that description perfectly, and she knew she was right, but she also knew he did it for her. It made his silly seat dance much more endearing and she found herself smiling.

When the smile came, it opened a floodgate for humor and she knew she was in trouble when she felt the wave of laughter aching to escape in her diaphragm. 

Stop looking at him before you lose it Pauling. The road. Look at the road.

As if there were any possible way of stopping herself she cracked into a fit of giggles, quickly she turned her head to the driver's window in a desperate reach to hide her face. The attempt was completely pointless. Scout stopped what he was doing and stared at her with slight concern.

"Miss Pauling, you alright?" He hadn't figured it out yet, she still had a chance to redeem herself. She opened her mouth to say something.

Another mistake. Rather than calm words, broken laughter fell from her mouth before she bit her lips, trying to stifle the laughs to no avail. She couldn't reclaim her composure in time and eventually she was laughing out of control, her shoulders shook and she gripped the steering wheel with white knuckles trying to keep her focus on the road. The noises she was making as she tried to stop laughing only made her want to laugh more.

Scout stared at her in shock for a second before eventually breaking into his own fit of laughter, and they were both laughing uncontrollably. Scout clutched his stomach and pounded on the door of the truck as Miss Pauling's eyes began to water. She was laughing too hard to realize she was drifting into the lane of oncoming traffic (not that it mattered much nobody used these roads unless they were lost).

Scout looked up, realizing she was drifting and reached over to pull the wheel into control but underestimated the little amount of effort needed to fix the problem, causing the truck to jerk. They both screamed and once again began laughing.

"Scout you idiot I can't stop!" she cried between bouts of laughter as the truck drifted to the opposite side of the road where the vehicle began shaking and bouncing violently over the gravel. The various tools and trash in the bed and littered about the car floor rattled and banged against one another creating a horrid cacophony.

"Oh my god, pull over! Pull over! Stop!" He yelled grasping the door and the dashboard for dear life.

"I can't! I'm trying!" She screamed back. Miss Pauling pumped the brakes until the truck was at a stop on the side of the road and parked it. Both of them panted viciously, their hearts pounded blood through every inch of their veins furiously. She rested her forehead on her knuckles that remained glued to the steering wheel, Scout took his foot down from the dash where it had apparently gone for stability and propped his head in his hand.

"Holy crap that was wicked insane, I got such a headache now," he said taking another breath. The intense noise that racked their ears moments ago made the idle whir of the engine sound like a soothing lullaby.

Scout observed their surroundings, getting his bearings together. Naturally, they were in the middle of nowhere, with nothing to view on the landscape but the distant hills and road before them. He switched his attention to Miss Pauling, whom still rested her forehead on the steering wheel.

Her hair was an absolute mess with her bangs fanned out in any direction while strands stuck in her frames and lipstick. When she looked at him her glasses were even more crooked than usual, and her expression read absolute shock. She was mostly surprised that she allowed herself and the car to get so out of control. He smiled leaning toward her and tapping under her chin.

"Was that more fun than getting swallowed by a bread monster?" His accent twisted his otherwise normal speech into his ridiculous Bostonian vocabulary, and she smiled back.

"Not nearly," she pushed her glasses back into place on the bridge of her nose.

"'Cause you didn't end up on top of me this time right?" He smirked at her suggestively. She glared at him through her frames.

"No Scout that was only half the fun," it took him a moment to realize what she'd said. 

When he did he caught her glare, looking past her frames at her emerald green eyes all he felt was the dull vibration of the truck as he stared at her with a stupefied expression. This was the longest silence that took place their entire trip. 

She broke the eye contact and grabbed the clutch to put the car back into gear when he reached out stopping her hand. She looked back at him as he moved his hand to her cheek and pulled her closer to his face. 

He was so gentle, she couldn't tell if he had guided her closer or she had moved on her own accord when his lips connected with hers. He pressed them together softly, sharing each other's warmth as she felt his hand push her bangs back into her hair. She could feel him savoring her, the thankfulness as he kissed her sweetly. 

He kissed her only for a short time before pulling away. Their foreheads remained connected as they opened their eyes, feeling their breath pass between them. 

Her lipstick was smeared across both of their lips but they'd laughed their lot for the night. 

Scout's hand came back to her cheek as he pulled back to admire her face. His fingertips traced over her temple and cheekbone. The longer she looked at him the more she felt him pouring his affection to her, finally something he was doing without words. His tough guy, jokester facade had melted from Scout's demeanor, all that remained was a vulnerability she'd never seen him wear. It was most likely a part of him he made sure was tucked away to preserve his total badass act. 

His palm rested on her cheek that had long started to flush under his touch. His lidded eyes glanced up to meet hers and she could tell he anticipated sharing more paragraphs.

"M-Miss Pauling I-" she hushed him abruptly, saving them both another ten minutes of Scout trying to spew his emotions all over the inside of the truck. 

Looking back down at his lips Miss Pauling felt a desire to taste his passion again, but the iron fist of her boss shattered her desires and she quickly glanced at the clock on the dashboard of the truck. 

Scout cleared his throat awkwardly, realizing what he'd just done could potentially land him a set of knuckles square in his jaw. Not that he would regret anything. He rubbed at the sticky, plum lipstick that was left over on his lips, stuttering as he attempted to speak yet again. 

"Uh- I figure we should y'know, probably get back right- I mean, before anything-er anyone uh- just in case- ...ah shit I'm so sor-" turning back to him she slapped her hand over his mouth silencing him instantly. Shifting to her knee she leaned in towards his seat, backing him into the passenger door. She removed her hand from his mouth as her face closed in beside his. 

"I can buy ten minutes. Make it count, Scout."

\--

By the time they reached the base the sun had completely retired below the earth and the outdoor lights were switched on, attracting every bug on site to flutter obnoxiously around the old, dim lights. 

Gravel crumbled under the tires of the truck as Miss Pauling passed through the cloth covering of the opening to the garage, promptly thrusting it into park once the tires reached concrete. 

She had already reapplied her lipstick and fixed her appearance of anything out of place. Needless to say she insisted on making sure Scout had his act together before she grabbed her notepad and clipboard. She paused to clear her throat. 

"Why did we take longer than expected, Scout?" She felt like an elementary school teacher asking her new student the rules of the room. As such he answered obediently.

"We ran somethin' over and it blew the tire while we were headin' to the spot to dump the dude's body."

"Good, and your shirt remains on unless you're undoubtedly-"

"With you?" He grinned smugly at Miss Pauling who shot him a sharp glare.

"Alone," she corrected him. She peered at him through her glasses menacingly, and his face straightened.

"Yeah yeah you know I got it Miss Pauling," he assured her with a smile before getting out of the truck. With a sigh she exited after him.

Walking into the empty halls of the base they reached the point where they would walk their separate ways. 

Scout looked down at Miss Pauling, who kept composure as if nothing had happened a short time ago. Damn she was good at covering shit up, in a lot of senses actually. He went to say something but stopped, they were under the eye of the Administrator now. She had lived years under her thumb, and now Scout was feeling the pressure. It was similar to court but this time he actually cared about the consequences of his words. With him saying nothing, she found it in her best interest to turn towards the way to her office.

"Your help was appreciated today Scout, thank you and have a good night," he was taken aback by her urgency. Damn she was really good at this. 

"Uh wait hold up Miss Pauling," she turned on a dime to look at him. He grinned knowing she was giving him her sternest look, he felt her mental message of "you better watch your goddamned tongue or it will be removed by morning."

"What?" She asked. He just smiled dumbly at her. Just act natural, is what she'd told him on the way back. He knew how to do that. A shiteating grin cracked on his face as he snapped his fingers into a double pistols in her direction. 

"Your ass is wicked killer today," total cover up. Genius. Miss Pauling rolled her eyes so hard they threatened to stick in her skull. She let out a peeved groan and turned around, continuing to her office. "G'night Miss Pauling! Keep uh, keepin' that ass..up! See ya tomorrow!" He called after her, he was totally slaying this acting thing. 

By the time Miss Pauling closed her office door her cheeks ached from holding back her laugh. 

Scout on the other hand, was grinning wider than the Cheshire cat himself.


End file.
